It would seem that I am not the only one who has contracted gold fever.
Since I wrote last week’s column I have had a lot of people ask me about what kind of basic gear is needed to get started in gold panning.
I am but a neophyte myself. I will admit, however, that I have taken a real shining, so to speak, to searching for the glittering metal.
As I mentioned last week, unlike a lot of outdoor activities that require a fairly sizeable financial investment, gold panning is relatively inexpensive. So here is a list and description of the basic gear needed to get started.
Gold pans come in a variety of sizes, ranging from eight inches in diameter all the way up to 16 inches. There are those who will tell you that plastic gold pans are better than metal pans. I like both. Both serve a purpose.
I have a Keene 12-inch green plastic pan that I use in conjunction with a metal detector. It is well-made and has a good system of riffles – which are indentations built into the sidewall of the pan designed to trap small flakes and particles of gold.
Early pans from the Gold Rush era did not have riffles.
Steel pans are certainly a bit heavier and, according to some a bit harder to use. The pan I use 90 per cent of the time is a lightweight metal pan made right here in B.C. It has riffles that are indented instead of ridges like on most metal pans. I also know that metal pans have one other very distinct advantage over the plastic, especially when you are walking in bear country.
I usually carry my metal pan attached by a clip to my backpack and make a point of giving it a bang every now and then with my wading stick when walking along a streambank.
Inside my pack I have a small, collapsible shovel, my Estwing prospector’s pick, a plastic scoop, a metal garden trowel, a plastic snuffer bottle (used for sucking fine gold from your pan), some tweezers and a commercially made crevice tool which is essentially a piece of metal, long and thin enough so that it can be used to help get at gold that has settled into the cracks and crevices of rocks.
Sometimes I also like to bring along a crow bar or pry bar to turn over heavy rocks or break open the cracks and crevices.
Last year I picked up a pair of rubber waders at a thrift store, but have since invested in a pair of Muckers. Either way, you will need waterproof footwear of some sort.
The weather can also change pretty fast sometimes, and it is better to carry extra clothing like rain wear that you may not use than wish you had it when the weather gets damp.
I carry both neoprene waterproof gloves and leather ranch gloves. Digging around in sand and gravel can be mighty hard on both the fingernails and hands.
A five-gallon bucket can come in mighty handy for carrying all of your gear. Turn it upside-down and you’ve got something to sit on. I pack a lot of my gear in those heavy duty plastic cubes used to hold four-litre milk jugs.
I also always have a number of small glass gold vials in my pockets – just in case. They are available at any store that sells prospecting equipment and come in a variety of sizes.
They work well for both estimating how much gold you have accumulated and for showing off your gold. (Just a hint: filling your vial with water will make your gold appear larger.)
While there are some things you will only be able to purchase from a store that sells gold panning/prospecting gear, there’s a good chance you will already have many of the tools or equipment needed for gold panning right around your home.
Like I said, it doesn’t require much of an investment to get started and you never know, you just might strike it rich.